re: Transfer Portal Windows to enter...

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Playoff teams trying to set their roster

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The playoff teams are focused on high school recruiting right now

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Head coach fired triggers a 30 day window.

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So, can Auburn attack the portal now?

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So, can Auburn attack the portal now?

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Any school can go after players who are already in the portal at any time*.

The new rule dictates when players can enter the transfer portal. The impact to a school like Auburn is that their current players can enter the portal during the 30 day period after the coach is fired rather than waiting for the next official “window.”

It doesn’t benefit schools that have fired their coaches. It theoretically hurts them because players are more likely to leave the team before a new staff can come in and do damage control.

*”Any time” may not be 100% accurate because I’m not sure how the recruiting calendar (dead periods etc.) applies to transfers. But the point is that the designated transfer portal windows don’t matter in that respect.

You don’t even know the rules

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Scholarships are awarded in July, except for early enrollees.

You can be over the 85 as long as they are just signees and not actually enrolled. Otherwise every school would be over the limit every year until the spring semester ended.

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Right. I guess I should have clarified - you can’t exceed 85 active scholarships at any time.

The point is that they’ve closed several loopholes that previously allowed coaches to get over 85 total then pare down (through various methods) by the start of fall camp. Now you have to actually have the space open before a new player can receive any financial aid.

In reality I think the rules have been tightening to prevent this kind of thing for several years now, but it has still happened to an extent.

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In reality I think the rules have been tightening to prevent this kind of thing for several years now, but it has still happened to an extent.

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They’ve done the exact opposite. The 25 signee rule was what kept this from happening. Now that it is gone, at least for now, coaches will be cleaning house each year and signing as many players as possible.

In an effort to seemingly help players, virtually every rule of implemented in the last decade in the NCAA has been a negative to the vast majority of players.

Even NIL, which mostly helps elite players in major sports (who were already getting paid) hurts the majority of players, because it drains resources from their sports.

I’ll be surprised if half the NCAA sponsored sports are still around in a decade.

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They’ve done the exact opposite. The 25 signee rule was what kept this from happening. Now that it is gone, at least for now, coaches will be cleaning house each year and signing as many players as possible.

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You say that, but they (more specifically, the autonomy conferences) made the criteria for scholarship nonrenewal the same as the criteria for scholarship cancellation several years ago. They can’t just process players by non-renewing scholarships anymore - all scholarships have to be renewed by July 1 or the university has to provide justification for non-renewal.

Of course you still have things like medical retirement, “you should probably transfer,” etc. but those require cooperation from the player.

One of the more insidious loopholes that I don’t think has been closed is the provision that allows a player’s scholarship to not count toward the 85-man limit if the head coach departs the university and the player doesn’t participate in athletic activities the following season. This has allowed (for example) Lincoln Riley to clear house on his arrival at USC without technically non-renewing scholarships; he doesn’t have to non-renew aid, he just has to drop the player from the roster. They can either stick around on scholarship or go somewhere else at that point. I guess it beats being processed and losing a scholly, though.

I don’t know, I guess we’ll see how it plays out.

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You don’t have to be at the 85 scholarship level until Fall practice starts. Thus, LSU could sign 30 or so freshman and bring in 5-6 transfers from the portal. Use Spring practice to weed out those who don’t quite cut it and get the roster to 85 when fall practice begins in Aug.

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That's where the new rule comes in that transfers have their scholarships guaranteed until they graduate, go pro, or their eligibility runs out. Basically, you're stuck with a transfer even if they don't work out.

I wish the portal window fell after signing day. Ability to start right away is a great selling point for LSU to high school seniors. I wonder if that changes some after taking guys from the portal.

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I wish the portal window fell after signing day. Ability to start right away is a great selling point for LSU to high school seniors. I wonder if that changes some after taking guys from the portal.

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I don’t think it will be that big of a deal from the standpoint of recruits’ decisions. The window only defines when players can enter the portal, not when teams can sign them. And the window runs both before and after early signing day.

I’m sure there will be some top guys who enter the portal immediately after the conference championship games, and teams will have to jump on those guys. But if the player is good enough, you do what you have to do.

The bigger impact for staffs is that it will be a fricking madhouse in December. It’s going to stretch resources thin dealing with the influx of transfer prospects plus early signing day.